The Baltimore Orioles aren't exactly the toughest customer, but the Boston Red Sox got the job done.
After winning the first two contests of the three-game set, the Red Sox put the finishing touches on the sweep with a 6-2 victory Sunday at Fenway Park.
Boston scored three runs in the first and sixth innings, and that was more than enough for Eduardo Rodriguez, who allowed just one run across six innings.
The Red Sox climb to 69-51 with the win. The Orioles fall to 38-78 with the loss.
Here's how it all went down.
GAME IN A WORD
Weird.
There were baseballs caroming all over the place, guys getting drilled, home runs getting called back and bad umpiring. This was an unusual one.
ON THE BUMP
-- Rodriguez had one of his better outings of the year, allowing just one run, which wasn't earned, across six innings. He allowed three hits and as many walks with six strikeouts.
The southpaw was a little slow out of the gate, issuing a one out walk and single to Austin Hays and Trey Mancini, respectively. Anthony Santander then hit a base knock to left, and Rafael Devers was unable to handle J.D. Martinez's throw in. It bounced off Devers' leg and caromed away, allowing for Hays to score the game's first run.
Rodriguez periodically allowed traffic on the bases in the early innings, but never put himself in a threatening situation. He retired the final six batters he saw in order, capping off a solid outing.
In the middle of the sixth, Rodriguez seemed visibly miffed at manager Alex Cora for telling him he was done for the day, but it made sense for the Red Sox to go to the bullpen at that point.
-- Adam Ottavino got the seventh, and he sure looked like a guy that hadn't pitched in a week. The righty hit Pedro Severino with a pitch to start the inning, then allowed Severino to move to third on two separate wild pitches the next at-bat. Severino actually had hit a homer that the umpiring crew called a homer, but upon review was ruled a foul.
Ottavino gave up a one-out walk to Maikel Franco to put runners on the corners, and Jorge Mateo responded with a single that drilled Ottavino and went into right that plated Severino and cut Boston's lead to 6-2.
-- Garrett Whitlock had to take over from there with Ottavino hurt, and he got out of the jam by getting Cedric Mullins to pop out and Hays to ground out.
Whitlock returned for the eighth and struck out the side.
-- Matt Barnes closed the door in the ninth, allowing a double and single.
IN THE BATTER'S BOX
-- Much like Saturday, the Red Sox offense got going early.
Xander Bogaerts hit a two-out single in the first, then Rafael Devers walked. That brought up J.D. Martinez, who launched a no-doubter over the Green Monster to make it 3-1 Boston.
-- Orioles starter Keegan Akin and reliever Marcos Diplán did a mostly good job keeping Boston's bats at bay from the second through fifth innings. However, Baltimore went to ex-Red Sox reliever Fernando Abad in the sixth, and that's when things unraveled.
Kyle Schwarber got his first hit in a Red Sox uniform with a leadoff double, and after a Bobby Dalbec strikeout, Abad walked the next two hitters to load the bases. That prompted O's skipper Brandon Hyde to replace Abad with Tanner Scott, who give up a single to Kiké Hernández to plate one and make it 4-1.
Scott then walked Hunter Renfroe to bring in a run, and a Bogaerts force out the next at-bat brought Boston's sixth run home.
-- Hernández and Schwarber led the Red Sox with two hits apiece.
-- Bogaerts, Devers, Martinez, Alex Verdugo and Christian Vázquez each had one hit.
-- Renfroe and Dalbec went hitless.
TWEET OF THE GAME
Never change, Eck.
UP NEXT
The Red Sox get Monday off before heading to New York for a three-game set against the Yankees. Tuesday will be a day-night double-header, with both games to air on NESN. First pitch for the matinee will be 1:05 p.m. ET, while the nightcap will be at 7:05 p.m. ET. Tanner Houck and Nathan Eovaldi will pitch for the Red Sox, but Cora didn't divulge who was pitching which game.
